Today's A Day When Dreaming Ends
by passingrossby
Summary: It all started as a harmless idea for the gang to hang out one last time before 2014 comes along. No one could have predicted what was to happen next. / Cabbie, with slight Bade and Tandré. Rated T for language.


_**I tried to rush this and get it done before last night, but I also didn't want to ruin it.**_

_**This is my first Victorious fanfic, yay! I know I'm a little late, but I just really love Cabbie and finally decided to write something for them. I hope you enjoy, please let me know what you think!**_

* * *

He had a funny feeling about today. Maybe it was the fact that it was the end of the year and the beginning of a new one, or maybe it was something he ate for lunch yesterday. Whatever it was, he wasn't looking forward to the day.

Something seemed odd.

"Robbie!" he heard Cat shout, which brought him back to reality. "Are you even listening to me?"

He contemplated telling her a lie, but he always felt like it was kicking Santa in the crouch when he saw Cat upset. "No," he sighed. "Sorry, I've just got a lot on my mind at the moment."

"Maybe it's all those curls," she said sweetly, making him smile.

"Maybe. What were you saying Cat?" he asked.

"There's a New Year's Eve party at Karaoke Dokie tonight and all the gang want to go! You have to come along with us Robbie, it's going to be so much fun!" she said excitedly.

"Isn't that normally a couple's thing? I normally just go with Rex and I look incredibly sad. I don't see anything fun about that," he said.

"I'm the hottest thing you'll ever have in your arms," Rex interjected, before Robbie put him away. He wasn't in the mood for Rex's insults today.

"Well, since Jade's got Beck and Tori's got André this year, I have no one to go with either. Come on, I'll even bring your favourite candy!" she offered.

He could feel his cheeks redden at the thought. It almost sounded like a _date_. With _Caterina Valentine_. The girl he had been madly in love with since the first day he stepped foot in Hollywood Arts. "You want to go with _me_?"

"Of course I do! I think you're swell," she sang sweetly, making his cheeks go even darker. She remembered the song. She obviously didn't remember how she crushed him for not realising he wanted to be with her, and how it was his attempt to woo her.

"I can't say no to you, can I?" he smiled back. It was true - Cat Valentine was his weakness.

"Yay! This is going to be so much fun! Thank you Robbie!" she said cheerily.

Things were starting to look up for him. But he still had a bad feeling, that just wouldn't go away.

* * *

"This blows," Jade rolled her eyes as she took a sip of her drink.

"Can you at least try to enjoy it?" Tori asked, a little annoyed. He just sat in the crowd, watching the singers on stage. He always thought it was better to stay quiet when the two bickered. "It's the end of the year, lighten up!"

Jade rummaged through her bag and picked up a pair of scissors, before putting them on the table. "It'll be the end of you if you don't shut up."

"Put the scissors away Jade, you promised you wouldn't bring them," Beck said.

"Seriously though, this sucks so bad," Jade moaned before taking a sip of her drink. "Can't we leave yet?"

"I thought you liked it here," he said in between bites of his chicken wings.

"What's to like about stupid loved up couples going up on stage proclaiming their love for each other by singing a sickening duet?" Jade pointed up to the stage.

"But we were just up there," Tori said with a smile pointed to André.

"My point exactly," Jade scoffed.

"So what's going on with you and Cat?" Beck whispered into his ear. He'd been waiting for that question all day.

"I don't know, we haven't even acknowledged our kiss and I'm sick of trying to show her my feelings, you know?" he whispered back, stealing a glance at Cat who was whispering to Tori too.

"Dude, it's the perfect time to try show her how you feel again. You can have a New Years kiss with her!" Beck pointed out.

"You think she'll even want to kiss me?" he asked. Everyone told him that Cat liked him, but he didn't believe them.

As Beck was about to reply, his attention turned to a certain redhead who ran up to the stage.

"One of my best friends wrote a song for me and it was one of the best songs ever! So I decided to do the same, with the help of my friend André!" she said into the microphone. "This song is called _Tattooed Heart_."

He could feel his cheeks redden as all his friends smiled at him. This couldn't be real, could it? Someone as amazing as Cat wouldn't write a song for someone like _him_, unless it was a cheesy high school movie.

_You don't need a lot of money_  
_Honey you don't have to play no games_  
_All I need is all your loving_  
_To get the blood rushing through my veins_

_I wanna say we're going steady_  
_Like it's 1954,_  
_No, it doesn't have to be forever_  
_Just as long as I'm the name on your tattooed heart_

_You don't need to worry about making me crazy_  
_'Cause I'm way past that_  
_And so just call me, if you want me_  
_'Cause you got me, and I'll show you how much I wanna be on your tattooed heart_

_Just as long as I'm the name on your tattooed heart_

_Wrap me in your jacket, my baby_  
_And lay me in your bed_  
_And kiss me underneath the moonlight_  
_Darling let me trace the lines on your tattooed heart_

_Just as long as I'm the name on your tattooed heart_

By the time she finished singing, everyone was on their feet clapping for her. He was smiling from cheek to cheek, and he had never been happier. But what if it was going to be another Cat moment? She mightn't understand what she just sang. God, he couldn't handle that again.

Beck had a huge smirk on his face. "I don't know man, maybe she does want that kiss."

* * *

Everyone left the table to give the two time to talk. And he was slowly starting to believe everyone. Maybe they were destined to be together. He had always hoped so.

"So you really wrote that?" he asked.

"For you," she said shyly, blushing at her confession.

His cheeks were matching hers by now. "Really? You wrote it for me?"

"I really like you Robbie," she said before she started to lean in. Their lips were inches apart before the gang had walked back to their seats.

"You have all year to do that Little Red," André said, resulting in both of them going even redder.

"Way to go Shapiro," Beck patted the curls on his head.

He noticed the way that Cat's eye started to follow something at the entrance. "You okay?"

"Yeah," she nodded, but still sounded unsure. "I just saw a scary man."

"I'm sure it's nothing," he shrugged it off. "But Cat, I'll always keep you safe."

"You promise?" she asked.

He answered her in a heartbeat. It always seemed like he did protect her, whatever way he could. "I promise."

* * *

"Any New Years resolutions?" Tori asked the group.

"Try get an ID that works," Beck answered holding up his orange juice, making them laugh.

"To stop talking to annoying people," Jade said, staring at Tori.

"I'm going to get signed to a record label," André answered.

"Whatever happens, let's make a deal. 2014, we're still all going to be together," he said. He knew it was cheesy, but everyone agreed. Even Jade did.

"2014, here we come!" Jade smirked and they all raised their glasses.

* * *

There was one minute left to the beginning of the New Year.

"I wish we had something to toast with," Jade sighed.

"To the best year yet!" Cat smiled.

"Hopefully the worst day of 2014 will be better than the best day of 2013!" Tori cheered.

"Not like that, you idiots. I meant toasting with champagne or some other drink," Jade rolled her eyes.

The countdown was getting closer.

"Another year to get everything right," Beck said.

"Or in your case, get everything disastrously wrong," André joked.

"Guys the countdown's going to start!" Cat said excitedly.

"10!"

"9!"

"8!"

"7!"

"6!"

"5!"

"4!"

"3!"

"2!"

"1"

_Bang!_

* * *

_He always liked New Years._

_Everything was so peacefully. Nothing ever happened, apart from fighting over the leftovers from dinner with his family._

_It was always a happy day in the Shapiro household._

* * *

The music that had been turned off for the countdown was now replaced with screams.

His hand automatically went to Cat's and he squeezed it. "Everyone get under the table now!"

They followed his command and somehow, everyone managed to fit. The boys were already protecting their girlfriends. Tori was crying, Cat was in a state of shock and Jade was unusually quiet.

"I take back everything I've ever said about wanting to live in a horror movie," Jade said in a whisper.

"Do you think anyone was hurt?" Tori asked.

"Cat, you saw him...you saw the guy," he said turning to his girlfriend.

"I want to go home Robbie," she pleaded.

"You will, I promise you. You'll be home soon and you can forget this ever happened," he wrapped his arms around her and enveloped her in a hug.

"Cat what did he look like?" Beck asked slowly.

She turned to him to see if it was okay to answer, and he smiled reassuringly at her. "He...he had really bushy blonde hair that was sticking out of a baseball cap. And he had a huge coat on. He was smiling like Jade does when she thinks of mean things to do that annoys Tori."

"You're doing great," he kissed her forehead. Normally he'd get a whole load of butterflies in his stomach whenever something like that happened. But not now, there was too much at stake.

"I want to go home Robbie," she said again.

"I know," he pressed his body closer to hers. "I do too."

He knew it was going to be a bad day. Why them? Why out of all days of the year, did they have to go Karaoke Dokie today? He only knew one thing for sure.

He'd get Cat out safely, even if it was the last thing he would do.

* * *

Everything that happened after that was like a blur to him.

"Get up."

"Robbie..."

"Get up NOW."

"Robbie I don't want to."

"Cat..."

"Stop hurting me!"

"Cat!"

* * *

"Why her?" he kept repeating.

"Shut up! If you're too loud he'll come back and get someone else too," Jade warned him.

"But why Cat? Aren't you worried for her too?" he asked.

"Of course I am Robbie! We've been best friends for as long as I can remember. But I know that I need to shut my mouth to save my own life!" she answered.

But he didn't care about his life. He didn't really value it anymore. A life without Cat seemed so pointless.

* * *

There was two more shots afterwards.

"I have to see if she's okay!" he said, before getting pulled down by Beck and André.

"Dude, if you go out there you'll get hurt!" André told him.

"I don't care! This is Cat Valentine, Little Red! She can't protect herself out there on her own. Heck, she can barely open her own locker some mornings!" he said desperately. "I promise I won't get hurt, I just need to help her. She could have be one of them..."

"Look, I know you're upset..." Tori said.

"What would you do if it was André?" he asked, watching her face fall. "You'd want to go out and save him no matter what happened. Because you _love_ him. Tori, please. Please let me go out there and find her."

Tori sighed and looked at the guys. "Let him go."

* * *

He moved around as quickly as he could, jumping up on his feet while looking out for her. There were many people who were still sitting down, crying and holding onto the person beside them.

Still no sign of Cat.

He couldn't even see the gunman. There was a lot of blood on the floor, and he tried to avoid it as best as he could. He still kept an eye on their table, making sure no one else would get hurt.

He would be the first person to say he's as defenseless as a baby penguin, but there was an inner strength in him that was so strong, he knew he could help her. He had to.

He was brought out of his thoughts by the cold metal sensation that was on the back of his head.

He was found.

* * *

"You're looking for the cute girl with the red hair, ain't ya?" the man asked.

He nodded, too scared to say anything. The feeling of the gun itched the back of his head as it moved. "What have you done to her?"

"Nothing too bad just yet," the man shocked him him with his answer. "I was waiting for someone from your table to join us. I didn't think I'd be this lucky to have you come out."

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"I'm having some fun. Now come on," the man grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled him along to the kitchen. On the way there, he noticed one of the Northridge girl's that he had previously gone on a date with was lying on the ground, motionless. He couldn't breathe, all he noticed was that everyone's eyes were on his.

He hoped there was a way out of this nightmare.

* * *

The first that he saw once he was shoved into the kitchen nearly broke his heart.

Cat was lying on the ground, battered and bruised, covered in blood. She was whimpering, she didn't even look up when they arrived. He could see the tears falling from her eyes. "Please don't hurt me again, _please_! I'll do anything you want."

"Stand up!" he shouted, which was when the two locked eyes. His breathing hitched and his heart broke. He promised he'd protect her. What a shitty job he was doing of that.

He felt something cold in his hands, and it wasn't until he looked down that he noticed there was a gun in them. Cat's eyes nearly fell out of her sockets and she started to cry again.

"You shoot her, I'll let you go. If you don't shoot her, I'll kill you both. Your choice Romeo," the man smirked, sending a shiver down his spine.

"I can't," he shouted pointing the gun away. This resulted in the man punching him in the nose, which made him lose his balance and fall to the floor. The man had started to kick him a couple of times, making him cough up blood. He had never been in so much pain, he just wanted it stop.

"I know you," Cat said quickly. "Your name is Johnny, you're my brother's friend."

"I'm _not_ your brother's friend! I do not want to associate with that _creep_ ever again!" Johnny shouted.

He could only watch what was going on. He'd never seen Cat look this angry before. "My brother is not a creep! You deserved what he did to you! You cheated him out of his money!"

"Shut up Valentine! I'm going to destroy your brother's world, just like he destroyed mine!" Johnny shouted. "You're just like him, you know that? You're sick in the head. And everyone has to take care of you because of that. Don't you know how annoying you are?"

"Shut up! Stop talking to Cat like that! She is none of those things you said," he shouted, regaining the energy to stand up. His whole body felt like it was on fire, the pain from the blows was unbearable. But he couldn't just lay there and watch the love of his life be insulted like that.

"Just fucking shoot her already!" Johnny put the gun in his hand again, raising his hand so that the gun was aimed perfectly at her head. "It's your decision, what's it going to be?"

* * *

_He'd never forget the first time he met Cat Valentine._

_She bumped into him the hallways, on the way to her locker. He was so afraid to talk to her, since he had never seen anyone look so beautiful. She had the voice of an angel and when she apologised, his heart melted. Luckily, Rex started to speak for him. _

_Cat didn't ask him why he was carrying a puppet around. She didn't call him a nerd. Instead, she asked if Rex was Pinocchio, and although she looked upset that it wasn't the cartoon character, she still talked to Rex like a human being. Of course their relationship deteriorated shortly afterwards. He always liked to think that it was because Rex knew to lay off her because he was so smitten with her. Rex did make fun of him a lot, but he never hit on her. Rex really was the best friend he could have ever wanted._

_Cat Valentine was the first person in Hollywood Arts to accept him for who he was and ever since then, he hadn't been able to get her out of his mind._

* * *

"So if Robbie kills me he'll be free to go?" Cat asked, bringing him out of his thoughts.

"That's the deal," Johnny answered.

"Do it Robbie. I don't want you to die," she said, her voic trembling.

"I can't," he said, tears starting to fall from his eyes too. He couldn't shoot her. If he did, he'd never forgive himself. He'd never be able to leave the night behind him. "I can't kill you."

"No, Robbie do it. And tell everyone else that I love them, okay?" she nodded. "Tell Jade to be nicer to Tori, since Tori's going to have to take my place as her best friend. Tell Beck to treat her nicely. And tell André to continue writing amazing songs. He'll go far."

"I'll give you another countdown Loverboy," Johnny put his gun back in it's original position, on the back of his head. "You have thirty seconds to pull the trigger."

As the seconds started to go by, he knew he needed to think of a way out of this. There had to be a way to save Cat, he knew there had to be. His hands were trembling, he couldn't keep the gun still.

He knew what he had to do. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath and pulled the trigger.

* * *

_He was so stupid to think he had feelings for Trina. _

_**Trina Vega**. Out of all the people who attended Hollywood Arts, he had to have a crush on **her**._

_But then Cat kissed him, to show that kisses didn't mean anything. But it did mean something to him. It meant everything to feel her lips on his, the passion that he felt when she first kissed him. He never wanted to let go, but she pulled apart and seemed so calm._

_It obviously showed him she'd never feel the same way. But it also showed him he'd never be able to feel anything **but** love for the redhead that stole his heart._

* * *

He knew that the scream that escaped Cat's lips would haunt him forever.

Opening his eye, he knew the bullet hit his target and he quickly turned around to face Johnny, before reaching up and hitting the gun on top of his head. Johnny was in too much shock to notice what had been going on, so he went down quicker than he expected.

He really didn't think the plan would work. And more importantly, he didn't think his aim was that good. He had managed to shoot the sack of flour, just a couple of inches away from her.

"Cat, get out of here now!" he shouted, before picking up the gun from the ground.

"I'm not leaving without you," she said desperately.

"You're not going too," he said before wrapping his arms around her.

The two quickly ran out of the kitchen together, getting their friends.

"We have to leave now, before he wakes up!" Cat shouted, helping everyone up. "Come on, hurry!"

After they had all gotten up, they tried to leave. The door was full of people rushing to get out. He turned to Jade and Beck, who were both pale with fear. "Whatever happens, you need to make sure she gets out."

"What about you? You promised us you wouldn't get hurt. And look at you, you look terrible!" Beck said.

"He wanted me to kill Cat, what was I supposed to do? Look, he's here to get her. We need to get her away from this place as fast as we can!" he told his friends urgently.

The crowd was dying out and he watched as everyone was leaving the doors. André got Tori and Jade out quickly, leaving him, Cat and Beck. Safety was just a footstep away and he had never been more relieved. He just needed to get Cat out of her as soon as possible.

Just as they were about to leave, he felt a sharp sensation in his stomach. Looking down, there was blood pouring out from his shirt. He had been shot.

The room was spinning around and his eyes were getting blurry. Nothing seemed real, everything felt like it was a dream. The last thing he remembered seeing was Beck holding Cat back, while she was kicking and screaming to get closer.

He dropped to the floor pretty quickly after that.

* * *

Everything was so peaceful.

He knew he needed to remember how to breathe though.

In. Out. In. Out.

He heard a lot of voices, but he couldn't recognise who they were. Breathing was more important.

In. Out.

* * *

"Cat, he's going to be okay."

"You don't know that!"

"I can't actually believe he's in here, I can't believe any of that happened."

"Why won't he wake up?"

"He's just tired, he needs to sleep."

"The doctor's said he should wake up soon."

"What if he doesn't?"

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but I actually miss him and his stupid puppet."

* * *

In. Out.

In. Out.

It was getting so much easier for him.

In. Out.

* * *

He slowly opened his eyes, fluttering furiously so he could get used to all the light. He groaned loudly, as he felt a sharp pain everywhere.

He looked down, his heart stopping as he saw the many wires sticking out of his body. He started to watch them intently, trying to figure everything out. How did he get here?

And then it hit him.

Karaoke Dokie. New Years countdown. Shots being fired. Cat.

_Cat_!

He shot up, ignoring the stabbing pains and looked around the room. He noticed that she was asleep in the chair beside him, her purple giraffe in her hands. Her body was covered in cuts and bruises. A lump was appearing in his throat, he couldn't deal with seeing her like this. He just wanted to go up to her and hug her. Stupid wires stopping him.

Cat started to move about in the chair, before she finally opened her eyes. He kept his eyes on her the whole time, noting how beautiful she was at the precise moment.

"Robbie..." she said breathlessly.

"Come here," he said with a shy smile, motioning for her to join him on the bed.

She walked slowly towards him, to slow for his liking, but he didn't say anything. He just left his arms out for her, before she rested her body with his, laying on the mattress too.

The butterflies were back.

He held her tightly, waiting for her to say something. They stayed like this for a moment, before she looked up at him with a teary-eyed smile.

"I'm really happy that you're okay," she said, which made his heart swell.

"Of course I am, I'd never leave you," he said. She pressed her lips onto his his briefly. He felt everything in the kiss, the desperation and the relief they both felt and the want, considering how long they had to wait for it. He tried to savour everything - the feeling of her lips, the taste, the way he felt her smile into the kiss. It was everything he could have wished for.

"What's going to happen now Robbie?" she asked when she pulled apart.

"I...I don't know. I don't know what's going to happen. But all I know is that I want to spend more time with you," he said sincerely.

"I love you," she kissed his cheek. "Please don't leave me again."

He started to grin brightly at her. "I won't. And I love you too, so much."

"Good, because you're my new Bibble. I can't live without you Robbie Shapiro."

* * *

_**Thanks for reading! **__**Reviews would be really nice. **_


End file.
